Gettysburg’s American Civil War Wax Museum Is For Sale

A favorite destination in America’s most famous Civil War battlefield faces an uncertain future as its owners are retiring and putting the building up for sale.

The American Civil War Wax Museum at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, was opened in 1962 and is selling for $1.7 million, the Evening Sun reports. Being a popular tourist attraction, the current owners say they are confident someone will buy it and keep it open.

The museum features more than 300 life-sized wax figures like these of Confederate Generals Joseph Johnston and Robert E. Lee shown here courtesy Flickr user cliff1066. Many of the figures are arranged into scenes of important moments in the Civil War.

In addition to the museum and a large gift shop, visitors can see reenactors demonstrating Civil War-era weapons and equipment most weekends from April through October.

Remarkably, the museum was founded by a Polish immigrant named C.M. Uberman, who moved to the United States shortly after World War II. This demonstrates the fascination this era of American history has for people all around the world. Here in Spain, history buffs ask me about the Civil War more than all other periods of American history combined. Hopefully if they make it to Gettysburg they’ll find the American Civil War Wax Museum alive and well.

Lady Gaga now a waxwork model at eight Madame Tussauds museums

Ah, Lady Gaga, what would we do without your telephone hats and nude suits?

Now the famous wax museum Madame Tussauds has unveiled Lady Gaga models at eight of their branches: London, New York, Las Vegas, Hollywood, Amsterdam, Berlin, Shanghai, and Hong Kong.

The figure at the London branch has the crazy suit shown here: a telephone hat designed by Philip Treacy and a midnight-blue Armani suit. Keeping up with Amsterdam’s debauched reputation, the museum there has a Lady gaga in a nude body suit, white jacket, and a rather phallic-looking purple hairdo. The other outfits are equally outrageous.

Hopefully her penchant for crazy clothes will continue, but not so much that she’ll have to be stripped by flight attendants like she was in March.

[Photo courtesy Madame Tussauds]

Johnny Depp: One Reason to Head to D.C.

No, Johnny Depp, the real, living and breathing guy is not in D.C.–not that I’ve heard, but wax Johnny is. Wax Johnny is a life-size replica that recently arrived in Washington, D.C. along with his wax celebrity buddies. A new Madame Tussaud’s is opening on October 5 in the heart of the city. The original wax museum is in London. There are others in Amsterdam, Hong Kong, Las Vegas, New York and Shanghai.

I have a recollection of going to Madame Tussaud’s in New York City, but it’s a vague memory, so perhaps this was just a weird dream–not a bad dream, but seriously, why would I have been at Madame Tussaud’s in a dream?

The Washington, D.C. version has themed sections. One section, The Spirit of Washington, D.C., includes scenes of important folks and events in American history. Rosa Parks refusing to give up her seat on the bus, Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s conversation with Winston Churchill during World War II, J. Edgar Hoover’s quest to find Communists and Watergate are part of it. This is not a sugar coated version of history, but focuses on its turning points.

Another section explains how the figures are made and two other sections feature sports and entertainment industry icons. Glamour is where you’d find Johnny. I’ve always said I could watch Johnny Depp just sit in a chair. This is even better. He’s standing and looking right at me.